Shabby chic – soft and opulent with signs of age. That’s what I think of when I look at this card I made for Mommy.
Layer paper, fabric, cheese cloth, and tissue paper. Sew a button in the middle of the stacked layers then spray with heavy-duty spray starch till soaking wet. Scrunch and shape then let the flower dry. The drying takes a few days because of all the layers. Then attach to a card front with Glubers.
Raid your fabric and ribbon stash and have fun creating one.
Shabby Chic Card
Yesterday we had record breaking warm weather. The thermometer reached into the high fifties!
This morning-
Not a big storm, but for this warm, dry winter 
– any snow makes us happy!
The desire to organize seems to hit me every year in the month of February. Perhaps it’s because I spend more time indoors during the cold months (though that is a bit of a misnomer for this particular snowless winter with its 50 degree weather). Last weekend, I defrosted the basement freezer. The only surprise there was all the room I had once the frost melted.
This weekend, I tackled the long neglected spice cupboard. I tossed a bunch of expired herb and spice mixes. When was the last time I made spinach dip for pete’s sake? We don’t do dip. Not even during the holidays. I think I bought them for my fantasy life where I entertain – a lot – and serve dip.
Then there was the fish seasoning I bought in an open air market on the island of St. Martin. You know how the person who isn’t crazy about fish to begin with is usually the one who ends up finding bones in the ‘boneless fillet’? In my house, that would be Old Roady. So I rarely serve fish. That wonderful blend of spices, now several years old, ended up in the trash – another victim of my fantasy life where Omega 3 is an integral part of our diet.
I was pleased with myself for all the purging and cleaning until I read Sara Noel’s Frugal Living column in my local paper and this statement sent me running back to my cupboard: McCormick’s website states that if their spices are in a tin can, they are at least 15 years old.
Okay, so mine is Durkee brand. Can I fool myself into thinking it’s NOT 15 years old?
I tried to decode the expiration date using Durkee’s FAQ page, but the number and letter sequence doesn’t make sense. Add that lack of information to the price tag still glued to the bottom – $1.67 – and I’m thinking I could have tossed this can of paprika 14 years ago and never missed it.
Now I’m in a quandary – throw out the can or keep it. I found the same one pictured on ebay labeled ‘vintage’. It’s a collectible. A few more years and it will be positively antique. This red tin can would look lovely in my fantasy Country Living kitchen.
I love these! Could it be because I got to play with my stash of fabric and vintage buttons?
Layers include fabric, printed paper, tissue paper from an old pattern and cheese cloth. Cut small, medium and large flowers and circles (I used Sizzix dies – Flower Layers and Circles #2 – but cutting shapes free hand would work just as well.) then stack with the largest on the bottom and smallest on the top. Add a bit of cheese cloth at the bottom and between one of the layers. Sew a button in the center to hold the stack together and soak with spray starch. Pinch and scrunch to shape the flower, then let dry overnight.
Center a 2′ Glubers on the embossed background (Cuttlebug’s Textile folder). Add bits of ribbon, yarn, lace and beads around the edge of the Gluber. Then press the flower into the center.
Easy and fun!
Went through my stash of old cards and found this bit of artwork to up-cycle on a Valentine card for Old Roady. I didn’t want fru-fru pink hearts or lace so stuck with browns and a muted maroon. I used a Cuttlebug die for the corners and Spellbinders Label Four die (S4-190) for the artwork.
This next card is more traditional. Screaming Valentine’s Day! The red glitter paper is from Stampin’ Up. (I think it was introduced in the Holiday mini catalog.) I cut out the hearts with my Sizzix dies. The smallest heart is stamped with a PSX stamp. (I understand they are no longer in business and the secondary market has some outrageous prices for their rare, collectible designs.) I stamped the image with VersaMark clear ink and embossed with red embossing powder. MS punch along the bottom is Doily Lace. The embossed background is done with the Craft Concepts Cottage Floral embossing folder.
In this practically snow-less winter, a light dusting that would have been poo-poohed in the past is exciting to see. This morning, we woke to about a half an inch on the grass and deck. I’m sharing a Zentangle tile I created a few weeks ago. I was waiting for a snowy day to share. Considering the winter we’re having – this may be it! My title for this tile is ‘Snowday’.
This lovely card was a Stamp Camp project. The paper is gorgeous. I lost my head over it! Yes, as Friend Owl would say, I’m twitterpated.
Photo source credit: Sodahead.com
If you’d like to wish the little red dynamo a Happy Birthday, hop on over to Facebook! He’s very excited about this special day.
Today’s quote: “Elmo loves you!” Elmo of Sesame Street
Pinterest! Oh my, the ideas I discover over there. I fell in love with a Christmas garland made from cards. Knew I had to have one, but Christmas had passed and I couldn’t wait a whole year to make one and display it. So I climbed into the attic and got out the box holding all the cards I’ve received over the years. I pulled out the Valentine cards Old Rhody and I have exchanged for the past twenty-eight years and, using my Cuttlebug machine and Sizzix dies, created a pretty garland complete with loving sentiments.
Here’s a short tutorial of what I did:
Each heart hung on the garland consists of two hearts – a front and a back. The heart for the back side of the garland is cut from the inside of the card as a way of preserving the sentiment. If that portion of the card is only paper, cut another heart from card stock and glue the paper heart to it.
Lay the heart that will show on the front of the garland face down, run adhesive just beneath the notch in the heart, glueing the ribbon in place.
Now, glue on the back – the heart with the sentiment – so the ribbon is sandwiched between the two hearts.
This is a view of the back of the garland as I added hearts, working from the center of the ribbon out to either side.
Here is the back completed.
A couple of close up pictures of the front when completed and hung.
I truly love the fact that these beautiful cards from years past are no longer hidden away in a box in the attic, but are hanging on a garland for me to enjoy. Going through that box of cards brought to light lovely Easter cards and Mother’s Day cards, too. So, yes, there are more garlands in my future. But right now, I have a few Valentine cards left over. Perhaps I’ll make some strings of hearts to hang in the window. Heart strings. Ohhh… that sounds like the name of a blog….
Where inspiration, creativity and faith intertwine
Anita K Greene 